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The Cable is co-ordinating a national campaign to get the police and Home Office to come clean on the technology that snoops on your mobile phone.

Exclusively, we bring you a short film, interactive map, public campaign, and briefing to parliament on IMSI-catchers in the UK and the need for transparency and accountability.

A Bristol Cable investigation in 2016, brought to light that at least nine police forces in the UK have secretly purchased IMSI-catchers, an indiscriminate and mass mobile phone surveillance technology. The number of police constabularies with the capacity to eavesdrop on your phone calls, read your text messages, and find out where you are is likely to be far higher. At present, 197 parliamentary constituencies are confirmed to be covered by police forces with IMSI-catchers.

In what circumstances are IMSI-catchers used, which authorities operate them, and most importantly, how are people safeguarded from this intrusive surveillance technology? These are just some of the basic questions that urgently need to be answered.

Unfortunately, the police and Home Office have consistently refused to disclose that they operate or even own IMSI-catchers, despite mounting evidence. This has prevented democratic scrutiny and undermined the notion of policing by consent. This is where you come in, follow the guide at the bottom of the page, and together, we can lift the lid on ‘law enforcement’s worst kept secret’.

Does your local police force have IMSI-catchers?

We have mapped the police forces known to have IMSI-catcher technology. You can zoom in and browse this interactive map to see if your constituency falls within one of these areas.

A briefing to parliament:

The case for transparency and accountability

Countless Freedom of Information requests have been sent to the Home Office and police, requesting information on IMSI-catchers. Almost all of these have been stonewalled and rejected. If you want answers, join people nationwide and contact your MP and PCC to raise this as a matter of urgency. Follow these simple steps to press for transparency and accountability:

Enter your postcode to find the email for your local MP

In a short email state that you are concerned by the use of IMSI-catchers in the UK, and if applicable, in your area.

Copy and paste the link to the briefing (thebristolcable.org/imsi-briefing), and send to your local MP.